CIS economies are in uncertainty – expert

YEREVAN, March 24. / ARKA /. Professor Ashot Tavadyan, head of a department at the State Economic University of Armenia, said the economies of several former Soviet republics making the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) are experiencing a period of uncertainty with extending intervals.

Speaking at a video news conference between Yerevan and Moscow on modern Russia’s economic policy, Tavadyan said their major problem is the gap between monetary and fiscal policies with domination of the monetary policy.

According to him, the CIS countries tacitly adhere to the Maastricht Treaty, according to which inflation should not exceed 3 %.

“And why not 5 %?. Who said that 3% is the best figure?” he asked.

In this regard, he noted that the Maastricht agreements were designed for European countries and can not be applied by transitional economies.

He argued that CIS countries need to dramatically increase their exports and take also dominant position within domestic markets and reduce imports.

The Maastricht Treaty was signed in 1992 in Maastricht (Netherlands), laying the foundations of the European Union. Member countries approved a number of criteria that must be fulfilled by countries which join the European Monetary Union. In particular, according to the document, government deficit must not exceed 3% of GDP, while public debt should be less than 60% of GDP. -